DeNesha Stallworth had 18 points and 11 rebounds to steady the Wildcats, who failed to get a field goal from A'dia Mathies for the first time in her career.

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Dan Duggan | Special to The Courier-Journal

For 30 minutes of Sunday's game against Navy, it appeared the University of Kentucky women's basketball team would continue its recent trend of first-round struggles in the NCAA Tournament. But the Wildcats, seeded No. 2 in the Bridgeport Regional, wore down the 15th-seeded Midshipmen to pull away to a 61-41 victory at Carnesecca Arena.

The Wildcats had struggled against double-digit seeds in the first round each of the past three seasons, never winning by more than six points.

Navy, the Patriot League champion, led 26-25 at the half and trailed by six with less than nine minutes remaining ...